


you know in your heart (you feel alive)

by calculus



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: 5 Things, F/M, Fluff, Future Fic, Gen, M/M, Not Canon Compliant, Pack Dynamics, Pre-Slash, Vacation, casual ableist language
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-02-05
Updated: 2013-02-05
Packaged: 2017-11-28 08:08:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,343
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/672165
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/calculus/pseuds/calculus
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Jackson wanted to go to the Maldives. Fuck that.</p>
<p>(Or, five vacation trips the Hale pack take as a group.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	you know in your heart (you feel alive)

**Author's Note:**

> I blame [Sophia](http://archiveofourown.org/users/stewardesses) so hard for this fail.
> 
> I'm just sorry I ignored my paper to do a half-assed ficlet. So so sorry. Pairings are not _explicitly_ pointed out, just mentioned. Take from that what you will, I guess.
> 
> Title comes from Run River North's new demo, "Beetle." [Give them a listen!](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WQiRNwHMbpw) (The song doesn't actually fit the fic, ahaha. I just really like the song, ffff.)

~~01\. jackson whittemore; the maldives~~

Jackson wanted to go to the Maldives. Fuck that.

**01\. jackson whittemore; yacht-surfing**

They go on Jackson's yacht because nobody besides him and Lydia can actually afford to leave the country unless it's to go to Canada or drive down to Mexico. It's nothing particularly special, just a break from the monotonous life of SATs and ACTs and college applications and the stupidly large swarm of supernatural occurrences that keep happening one after another. Lydia puts it aptly as, "I need to get the fuck away from here as far as possible because otherwise, I may actually burn this town down."

Nobody wanted to test that.

So, they choose a weekend in between the lull of practice exams and vicious pixies to take out Jackson's ridiculously large yacht out to Shasta Lake even though it's more houseboats than super classy yachts, and gear up with illicit alcohol, courtesy of Lydia and Jackson, swim gear and tons and tons of suntan lotion because Stiles burns like a peach.

They arrive by the marinas in clumps, carpooling falling on Stiles, Derek, and Jackson. Lydia and Danny and Jackson arrive fashionably early to take care of before-boarding matters, while Derek and his group of three cram out of the stylish Camaro second in various shades of grumpiness because Derek is a contagious little bastard. Stiles, Scott, and Allison come in last place, pulling in a few minutes after Derek's parked, with Blink-182 blasting from the jeep's radio. They pile out, chatting and joking, Allison's arm slung around Scott's shoulders while Stiles heads out to the trunk to take out his cooler, comics, and board games that Allison decided to bring along.

Isaac immediately breaks from his beta circle to Scott's other side, squeezing Allison's hand as he comes near and gives Stiles a crooked smile before glomming onto Scott. Stiles rolls his eyes and moves to greet the rest of the pack, clapping Erica and Boyd lightly on the shoulders and aiming a cheeky wink at Derek before falling in with Danny and Lydia.

-

The day is spent on the boat, most of them sunbathing or in the clear, cold water because it's suspiciously empty for a weekend getaway. Jackson reigns in his natural element, being a big rich snot to everybody else while dutifully rubbing suntan lotion on Lydia's bared back and shoulders, sitting on one of the many lounge chairs, also stripped for maximum sun-coverage. Danny sits beside them, laying on his front with his phone cradled to his face, almost asleep.

Erica and Isaac spend their time alternating between splashing around in the cold water and taunting the other members of the pack to jump in. Scott and Allison are holed up in one of the upper levels of the yacht deck, doing their version of the Titanic headboard embrace while Stiles throws peanuts at them from below and warbles Celine Dion off-key. Boyd's inside, volunteering himself as sous chef to Jackson's private chef onboard, helping Chef Pierre chop for their late luncheon.

And, Derek hovers around, hands rolling around contraband beer, before he sets himself by Stiles' side quietly, shifts through his impressive collection before settling on an issue of Young Avengers.

-

Isaac and Scott end up tearing out one part of the lower deck's railing because they're idiots who like to horse around without putting a check on their supernatural strength. Jackson almost has an apoplectic fit. Derek has to shoulder the enormous bill, and resigns himself to a few months of living on processed foods until his next commission comes along.

Stiles laughs himself sick.

-

**02\. erica reyes; roadtripping**

Spring break is a road trip because Erica has never been out of Beacon Hills. Derek is surprisingly susceptible to her pleas, token protests aside. He rents an RV because there's no way in hell he's going to squish himself and nine other people into Stiles' hell-on-wheels Jeep and Scott's mom's station wagon. The price of gas alone is enough to pay for at least a year's worth of central heating.

Erica plans out the trip meticulously, mapping out the places they'll hit and the possible prices of motels and restaurants for when they just really can't stand being inside the RV any longer. She singles out Yosemite Park and Reno as the two absolute places they need to hit, and draws heavy circles around the two dots on her foldaway map, scowling at anybody who'd dare to say otherwise. She delegates food issues to Boyd, who holds his hand out for Derek's credit card with expectancy.

His poor wallet.

-

Driving duties switches off amongst the pack, who drew straws beforehand, and Derek who intended to take on at least half of the trip by himself because he's stupidly paranoid about his packmates damaging the rental. Still, he gives up the wheel easily when Scott comes to relieve him once they hit a third day of driving on the open road, trading in for one of the fourteen paperbacks Isaac has stashed in one of the RV compartments.

The RV is relatively big, but nine people is more than what the recommended capacity demands, so bunking is the only way to go. They switch off every three nights or so, but eventually, they stick to the one grouping that everyone gravitates most to . Danny sticks with Isaac on one of the bottom bunks most nights, except for when Isaac gets to sandwich himself between Scott and Allison. Lydia claims top bunk with Jackson, and Scott and Allison get the bunk under them. Erica and Boyd take the remaining top bunk, and Stiles and Derek are left to shift around on the pull-out couch.

There's not much space in general, and any precursors to sex by any of the couples are quickly laid to rest by loud complaints and thumps against the bed boards. Any overtures to privacy become redundant when they realize enclosed spaces and werewolf senses don't actually allow for any self-consciousness.

The pack makes do.

-

Reno is their last stop because they decide it would be fun to end the trip with underaged gambling, so they head for Yosemite first, crossing through Sacramento and hitting by San Francisco and San Jose for a couple days of light tourism because it’s Erica’s first time.

In the end, by the time Allison drives them into Reno, everybody's stir-crazy enough that a small comment is enough to create a nuclear meltdown. Derek's had to separate his betas at least two times, the humans four, and had to call for a small pit stop once when he himself was dangerously close to clawing somebody's organs out.

Erica has a pretty good time at the casinos, though. Thank god for fake IDs and boobs.

-

**03\. vernon milton boyd, iv; disneyland**

Graduation falls upon them within the blink of an eye--if you could call months of hideous crying and nervous breakdowns over acceptance letters and finals a blink of an eye. Nonetheless, they power through the remaining months, clutching at each other and their SAT and AP practice books and their acceptance letters as security blankets as the clock ticks faster to the end of high school.

They also end up facing off against a group of shapeshifters and another rowdy bunch of omegas. Small fries, though, like the universe was finally letting up on them now that they were growing up.

The final count splits the pack up three ways: Allison and Isaac stay in California at University of Berkley, Scott a close hour away in Davis; Boyd, Danny, and Jackson accept universities in the far east coast, taking up residence in NYU, Columbia, and Cornell, respectively; and Lydia, Stiles, and Erica hole up in between at Northwestern and University of Chicago. For now, they don't think about how the pack is going to survive in the coming fall or how they're going to keep together.

For now, prom and graduation are the only things on their minds.

-

Boyd asks to go to Disneyland.

(Derek gives his betas one wish to grant; Erica and Scott opt for new cars, Isaac the latest iPhone model, and Jackson just waves it off. He gets an approving smile and a hug anyway.)

They leave the night of prom, all loose-limbed and giddy with excitement and the knowledge of a new beginning, and pile into the limousine that Jackson's bought for the occasion, sitting on each other and swigging down champagne glasses like water. The chauffeur drops them off by Derek's apartment, where he sits outside by the gate, with all their bags packed. The limousine is traded in for a van, and Derek settles at the wheel while his pack shout and scream until sleep overtakes them all.

He gets there by morning, and the bright smiling faces of Mickey, Donald and Goofy on the highway signs are the first things his hungover and exhausted pack wakes up to. There's a bit of lackluster excitement, dampened by the pounding headaches and the aching muscles from sleeping in twisted positions and uncomfortable car cushions, and well. Derek has to get his kicks somewhere.

He dumps the pack in the middle of Magic Kingdom before they're fully awake.

(The dickhead.)

-

(Lydia destroys Derek's entire duffel bag and the clothes inside as punishment that night.)

Aside from the initial rude awakening, the trip is a blast. Isaac and Boyd are the most excited of the bunch, dragging the group around and pointing out the multitude of costumed characters cheerfully waving on Main Street, USA. (Their childish glee is apparently charming enough to attract attention from Disney princesses; Boyd gets the most numbers, and several from a few princes.)

Stiles and Scott geek out in Tomorrowland, declaring a team competition with Isaac and Erica as their seconds in the Buzz Lightyear's Astro Blasters ride. Lydia heads out to Fantasyland for some scenic pictures in front of the iconic castle, dragging Jackson along. Danny is unnervingly intent on New Orleans Square, and Allison goes with him on her way out to Frontierland. And, Derek and Boyd are left to scour the entire park, effectively hitting each square with the intention to try out all the rides in each area.

By the time night falls, no ride is left untouched--some even left worse for wear because _some people_ have no control whatsoever.

They pay for the night at one of the hotel resorts surrounding the park because they "are not barbarians, and so help me god if I have to actually camp out in a van like a homeless rat." (Three guesses to who says this.)

-

They hit Adventure Park the next day.

-

(Graduation remains one of the best memories Derek's had in a long time.)

-

**04\. allison argent; white-water rafting**

Summer before college begins, Allison has the bright idea to go rafting as pack bonding.

The less said of it, the better.

-

(They head out early in the morning to get to the Middle Fork of the American River in Placer County before the sun is up high enough to make them all drown in their own sweat. The werewolves are unnaturally excited, with the exception of Derek, who remains the master grump, while the humans eye the rushing river with trepidation.

Allison is beyond stoked, already gearing up for the adventure, tugging on her life vest and nodding along intently as their group instructor guides them through moving the rafts and the dangers of careless rafting. Danny backs out just as they're pushing into the riverbed, citing his desire to live another day. Derek almost follows, but the mocking smirks on his betas' faces and the challenging grin on Stiles' and Allison's are enough to keep him grounded to the raft, stonily pushing along with the rest of the crew.

Danny ends up being the smart one.)

-

Rivers give Derek irrational hives now.

-

**05\. derek hale; new york city**

They make the collective decision to surprise Jackson at one of his Division I qualifying games. Three days before, everybody gathers up in New York City to pick up Danny and Boyd for a quick reunion before driving upstate to Ithaca.

It’s been three years since Derek's been back to New York, but it feels like he never left. The city is dirty and metallic, grimy with pollution and trash build-up on the sides of streets. The air is noisy and so muddled with different tastes that it gives Derek a headache after only a few breaths, and it hits him in the gut when he instinctively reaches out his sense to look for Laura's familiar scent and finds nothing.

Boyd and Danny take them around for the generic tourists' run, scoping out the Empire State Building, walking around Central Park, a ferry ride to the Statue of Liberty, dinner in the theater district. Allison and Isaac are beyond dazzled, enamored with the city streets and the falafel carts set up every few blocks, while Lydia only rolls her eyes and drags Stiles and Erica into Soho for shopping. Scott meanders off by himself for Bryant Park, leaving a vague message of looking for presents. Derek gives it an hour before they all get an SOS from Scott, asking for directions.

The day after, Derek takes them through his version of the city, stopping by the original Shake Shack in Madison Square Park for burgers and exiting the island into the other boroughs for the more ubiquitous places he and Laura used to frequent in Brooklyn and Queens. They end up for pizza at one of his favorite old pizzerias in Williamsburg, sitting in the bright plastic chairs, inhaling wide slices of cheese and pepperoni.

Stiles gives him a pair of aviators he bought off a street vendor, cheesy ones that read "I ♥ NYC" across the bottom of the tinted lenses, wearing a matching pair on his head.

-

Jackson plays like a boss and almost cries when his entire pack comes out running onto the field to tackle him when his team wins the game.

**Author's Note:**

> I wanted to add more Danny, but I really didn't want to write anymore by the end of this, ahaha. Sorry. Next time! Also, Lydia's a bit classist, boo.
> 
> I tried to make the fic kind of pack-y (???), but I don't know. A lot of detail is missing because I really couldn't be bothered, so the white-water rafting in particular is really generalized and based on my own imagination of what rafting is like, ahaha.
> 
> Welp.


End file.
